Don't get me wrong, I'm horrified by the revelations of abuse at Penn State but what this sorry situation says about leadership and management in this country today is more than notable. I like to think of what I would have done back in 2002 were I in the shoes of coach Mike McQueary. I like to think that if in the locker room one night I happened across a grown man-- Sandusky sodomizing a 10 year old, I would have acted far different than McQueary. First, I would have grabbed the nearest fire extinguisher and cracked Sandusky over the head with it. Next I would have then put that poor 10 year old kid in my car and taken him to the hospital. And while in the car I would have call the cops on Sandusky. That's what I like to think.
As McQueary realized what he was seeing in that locker room and turned to walk away he was I'm sure, already thinking the following--
- Sandusky has coached here for 30 years. He has lots of friends. Will his friends hate me for outing him?
- Sandusky is a 30 year friend of Coach Paterno. Will Paterno fire me for outing his friend?
- Will the athletic director hate me for creating a scandal if I out Sandusky?
- Nobody really likes a whistle-blower. Will this wreck my career? Will I ever get to be a head coach?
I think anybody with even a sliver of ambition might think similar thoughts as they exited that ugly scene. And I'm sure Coach Paterno (who for years has been more worried about his legacy than anything else), the athletic director, and university president all asked themselves these kinds of questions. I know there are many million$ involved in college football but university management-- any management should demand more in that situation.
Sadly I think today most of us would start to ponder those questions when in fact no thinking at all was required to do the right thing. Helping that kid and calling 911 was the right action but let's face it, confronting evil armed with power, reach and resources is risky. Most of us would do what McQueary did. Nobody really likes the person that points out the ugly truth. Only twice in my life have I raised my hand and called "bullshit" on things far less ugly than pointing out pedophiles. I paid dearly once. I like to think I'd do the same thing again... but the problem is in the thinking. Had McQueary, Paterno, the athletic director and president simply not thought-- they would have done the right thing and stopped Sandusky. Lord only knows what Sandusky did to kids between 2002 and today? All these people put themselves first and the needs of small kids second.
It's all very sad and it says a lot about ambition, morals, management, money and what really matters.
As McQueary realized what he was seeing in that locker room and turned to walk away he was I'm sure, already thinking the following--
- Sandusky has coached here for 30 years. He has lots of friends. Will his friends hate me for outing him?
- Sandusky is a 30 year friend of Coach Paterno. Will Paterno fire me for outing his friend?
- Will the athletic director hate me for creating a scandal if I out Sandusky?
- Nobody really likes a whistle-blower. Will this wreck my career? Will I ever get to be a head coach?
I think anybody with even a sliver of ambition might think similar thoughts as they exited that ugly scene. And I'm sure Coach Paterno (who for years has been more worried about his legacy than anything else), the athletic director, and university president all asked themselves these kinds of questions. I know there are many million$ involved in college football but university management-- any management should demand more in that situation.
Sadly I think today most of us would start to ponder those questions when in fact no thinking at all was required to do the right thing. Helping that kid and calling 911 was the right action but let's face it, confronting evil armed with power, reach and resources is risky. Most of us would do what McQueary did. Nobody really likes the person that points out the ugly truth. Only twice in my life have I raised my hand and called "bullshit" on things far less ugly than pointing out pedophiles. I paid dearly once. I like to think I'd do the same thing again... but the problem is in the thinking. Had McQueary, Paterno, the athletic director and president simply not thought-- they would have done the right thing and stopped Sandusky. Lord only knows what Sandusky did to kids between 2002 and today? All these people put themselves first and the needs of small kids second.
It's all very sad and it says a lot about ambition, morals, management, money and what really matters.
No comments:
Post a Comment